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Aug 3 (Reuters) - Serena Williams showed she has made a full recovery from recent health issues by beating Angelique Kerber 7-6(1) 6-3 in the final of the Stanford Classic on Sunday.

Williams, playing in her first tournament since being forced to retire from a Wimbledon doubles match because of a viral infection, took the Stanford crown for a third time and won her fourth title overall this season.

Her return to fitness has come at just the right time with the US Open set to start on Aug 25.

Williams had her service broken twice in the opening set, but rallied to dominate the tiebreaker 7-1.

She claimed a 2-0 advantage in the second set and held off her German opponent the rest of the way. Williams fired six aces and did not face a break point in the final set.

Kerber was looking for her first title of the season but instead lost her fourth singles final of 2014. (Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter Rutherford)